


The Things You Missed

by Little_Miss_Invisible



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Tim Drake, Bad Parents Jack and Janet Drake, Bruce Wayne Tries to Be a Good Parent, Child Neglect, Gen, Hurt Tim Drake, Kidnapping, Misunderstandings, Self-Esteem Issues, Tim Drake Angst, Tim Drake Gets a Hug, Tim Drake Needs a Hug, Tim Drake is Not Okay, Tim Drake is Red Robin, Tim Drake's Missing Spleen, Tim Drake-centric, but he will get better
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:09:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29894718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Little_Miss_Invisible/pseuds/Little_Miss_Invisible
Summary: “Huh. What the actual fuck?”So he had been kidnapped as Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne again.Tim had been kidnapped again. This time, he had contingencies but he didn't expect that the man would be livestreaming his kidnapping to Bruce Wayne himself, especially when he was drugged up and had no filter on the words he was saying. The Bats are in for a big revelation as to how Tim feels about them.
Relationships: Bart Allen & Tim Drake, Bart Allen & Tim Drake & Kon-El | Conner Kent & Cassie Sandsmark, Cassandra Cain & Tim Drake, Stephanie Brown & Tim Drake, Tim Drake & Bruce Wayne, Tim Drake & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson & Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Jason Todd, Tim Drake & Kon-El | Conner Kent
Comments: 20
Kudos: 277





	The Things You Missed

“Huh. What the actual fuck?”

His vision was blurry meaning he had been drugged and it felt like the floor kept moving beneath his feet so possible vertigo was established. He was also lightheaded from lack of food and a very likely concussion but he knew he could still fight.

Thankfully, he didn’t seem to have a fever because that would have made this even worse than it already was if his weakened immune system was shot. Given that he felt winded and his heart was racing, Tim thought he might have been given a dose of fear toxin or something similar while he was knocked out.

Tim pretended to struggle so that he could catalog his surroundings. He was tied to a wooden chair in some kind of metal room, most likely lead lined. A lone figure was visible in the distance but it didn’t look like any of the standard Gotham villains he faced off with regularly.

There didn’t seem to be anyone other than the two of them which helped him calm down immensely. He could take him. He was still tied up in a chair in the middle of the room under an overhead light, figures.

“Tt. Where are your manners, Timothy? I know we aren’t off to a great start but I expected _more_ from the CEO of Wayne Enterprises.”

So he had been kidnapped as Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne _again_. Looking at the bright side, this one was much nicer given that he wasn’t half beaten to death yet and he actually had a chance at escaping on his own this time. He just needed to figure out this guy’s motive so he could make a plan to escape. All of his gadgets were stripped off of him, including his watch with the panic button so that sucked.

That made it harder to escape but he at least has the element of surprise. He just had to distract his kidnapper, at least until his vision becomes clear again so he can escape. He had contingencies now because of last time and he was sure at the very least that his team would be looking for him by now.

“My apologies! My manners are back in Gotham, you know, where you kidnapped me. I was just about to head off to Japan to finalize a business deal so you can understand my frustration at being here. Do you even _understand_ how much work I’m going to have to do to fix this?”

“I won’t worry about that so much. After all, who told you that you’re going to get the chance to fix it?”

This sent a shiver down Tim’s spine but the guy did seem willing to draw this out. He would just have to take advantage of this and stall for as long as he can so that he can recover enough to get free.

“My assistant is one of the world’s best and she will have known from the minute I didn’t land in Japan that something happened. She’s bound to have done something to save me if only because she likes working for me and refuses to have another boss.”

“Your assistant? Not your family, perhaps?”

Was this why the guy kidnapped him? To get to the infamous Wayne family inheritance? That wouldn’t make any sense since Tim was just the middle child. If he really wanted to get money, he should have sprung for Damian but Damian was the hardest one to kidnap since Bruce gave him the most security.

“My _family_? You really think my _family_ is going to give a shit about where I am? Two of my brothers hate me enough to try and kill me while the other one took away the only good thing left in my life. I haven’t talked to Bruce face to face since he got back. I spent a whole year exploring the world by myself without so much as a _single_ call from any of them asking about how I was doing. I lost my fucking _spleen_ while I was gone because of an assassination attempt and none of them even bothered to ask if I was okay. When I came back, all they were focused on was the work that I hadn’t done. I haven’t talked to my brothers in months outside of work and Bruce for even longer. Hell, I don’t think I’ve ever talked to Bruce outside of work since I became CEO.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. The media says you’re Bruce Wayne’s favorite son.”

“Wait. Did you say, favorite son? Hah! _Favorite son?_ What shitty tabloid did you get that from? _Everyone_ knows that it’s Damian or Dick or even Jason. _Literally_ everyone but me. You- _you must be joking_. You’re joking, right?”

“Do I _look l_ ike I’m joking?”

The man finally stepped into the overcast light as he growled. He wasn’t immediately familiar-looking to Tim but that made it all the more dangerous. He seemed like a decently rich businessman, only a decade or so older than Bruce but still far from being elderly. A vein was popping in his neck. He must really hate not being taken seriously. Thankfully, he didn’t seem like a brute force kind of guy judging from the lack of new injuries.

“You must be! That’s the best joke I’ve heard so far. _Me?_ His favorite son. What a laugh. _Wait._ Is-Is that why you kidnapped me, to try and get Bruce’s attention? _Newsflash_ , we don’t do ransoms anymore, so you’ll just have to settle for the gift of my presence. I’ve been told it’s priceless.”

“Why are you so calm?”

He’d finally pissed him off. Maybe the man will finally start sharing some information. His vision was clearing up so it made it easier to figure out where he was and his head wasn’t throbbing as bad. There was a lot of background noise like running water so he might be on a boat again. He just had to suppress the trauma coming back for long enough to save himself. Time to compartmentalize. Tim raised an eyebrow.

“Do you _really_ think this is the first time I’ve been kidnapped? I was the heir to Drake Industries before becoming a Wayne and my parents stopped handling ransom calls after the 5th failed attempt. It looks bad on the business to keep seeing the heir kidnapped and all that. Plus, they were never really around to notice me missing so I had to find a way to get home or to save myself. It got bad enough that a crew actually let me go when they realized my parents didn’t care about me but enough about that. When are we getting to the part about your conditions and what you want from me?”

The man suddenly smiled and Tim felt unease settle in his stomach. His smile was every James Bond villain’s stereotypical creepy smile but that just made this situation a little bit more unpredictable. If it wasn’t money, it was either revenge on Tim specifically but it was leaning towards revenge on Bruce given how many times Bruce has been mentioned. 

“You misunderstand me, Timothy. I’m not doing this for _money_. I have more than enough of that on my own.”

Tim rolled his eyes and checked the knots holding his hands. It was a pretty decent knot but not one that could keep him tied up. He started to make small adjustments to loosen the knot. After what happened with Jason, Bruce made sure that there were no knots that could keep any Robins tied down.

“Then why?”

“Your _father_ took away the best thing in my life so I’m taking away the best thing in his.”

Tim almost started laughing at the incredulity in that statement. Him? The best thing in his father’s life? What a joke. He was halfway done untangling his arms but his legs were still tied up. It would take a lot of maneuvering to get into a position where he can defend himself. Thankfully, his shoes still had the hidden blade so he can cut himself free later as long as he works carefully.

“My father is _dead_ so maybe you should try that again.”

“Last I checked, Bruce Wayne adopted you so he is in fact, your father.”

So it was about Bruce. Well, this changed his plans a bit. This is a bit more than the typical revenge plot but he can work with that. He just needs to figure out why exactly this man wanted revenge on Bruce of all people.

“If you say so. Wait. What did Bruce take from _you_? Your business? Your wife? Your kid?”

It looks like he hit the nail on the head.

“Bruce Wayne took _everything_ from me! We were _fine_ before he decided to stick his nose into our lives. One meeting with him and my wife was suddenly filing divorce. Next thing I know, my wife and my only child are filing restraining orders against me and pressing domestic abuse charges against me. The media crucified me and painted him as a _savior_ for taking my family away from me. My company, that I built up from the ground up for decades, ended up going bankrupt and of course, ever the kind soul, Mr. Wayne bought my business and incorporated it into Wayne Enterprises, giving it to my wife to handle. I lost everything because of him and if I can even get him to feel a _fraction_ of what he put me through, I can die happy.”

So now it was this guy’s life’s mission to get revenge on Bruce. It was unnerving that the guy was willing to die for this but Tim had dealt with crazier people on a regular basis. That just made him unpredictable but also prone to error. Tim could work with this.

“And you thought kidnapping _me_ was the answer?”

“With you gone, I weaken his business and strike him where it hurts. I’m hitting two birds with one stone.”

“You would be if he actually gave a shit about me but unfortunately for you, you got the _replacement_ , not the original.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Did you really think for one second that I’m the best thing in Bruce’s life? Not his blood son? Or his recently revived son? Or even his firstborn? Hell, I’m pretty sure our butler has a higher chance of being the best thing in his life than I do. Sure, he tends to praise me more in the media but that’s just because I literally help run his business.”

“But in public, all he does is sing your praises.”

“I’m the CEO of his family company. If he didn’t reassure the board members of my capability, I can’t pick up his slack at WE. What? Did you think that just because I have the backstory that’s most similar to his that it would make me his favorite? If anything, it makes him scared to become close to me because he doesn’t want me to turn out like him. Do you know the last time he talked to me about things outside of business? When he adopted me.”

His hands were finally free. He didn’t see anyone else inside the room but he had no way of knowing if there was anyone else outside of the room until he escaped. The corners were too dark for him to make out what was placed there. He was getting to the guy with his words though.

“It doesn’t matter. You’re still his son.”

“On paper, yeah! But in real life, I’m just a _replacement_ for the son that he thought lost and found again. He only kept me because I’m the only one of his children who actually gives a shit about the family business. Hell, I was only adopted so that Drake Industries could be acquired easily by Wayne Enterprises. I basically _forced_ my way into their lives and they kept me because I made myself _useful_. He fostered Dick because he wanted to help him and adopted Jason to take care of him. Damian’s been the light of his life since Bruce found out he existed. The others are there because he _wants_ them there. Hell, I’m not even sure _any_ of them want me there. If you really wanted to hurt Bruce, you should have taken someone else because I haven’t seen him outside of business for the last 6 months and I haven’t seen my siblings for even longer. Why would I anyway? They barely even _tolerate_ me let alone consider me part of the family.”

It was weird because Tim would never normally share all of this information but it was coming out of his mouth without any filter and it wasn’t like there was anyone else here to hear. It must have been whatever drug they injected in him before.

“ _You’re lying!_ You just want to save yourself. I won’t fall for your tricks! Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I guess we’ll find out how much your father really cares about you once we call him. After all, he already got a free show of you dosed with fear toxin and unable to wake up. Who knows? Maybe that called out to his conscience.”

Shit. It didn’t seem as if he compromised their secret identities since the guy didn’t take any additional precautions. He’d always been so careful to avoid getting dosed with fear toxin so that none of the others would find out about how weak he was. What the fuck did he even talk about?

“Good luck with that. My brothers have _literally_ tried to kill me in front of him and he hasn’t batted a lash.”

“Aww. Poor little rich boy, hated by his adopted siblings, scared of being left alone and of never being enough. Always abandoned, crying out for someone to come but they **never** do and they **never** will. I did my research, you know? We’re too far out of Gotham for the bats to come to your rescue and this whole thing is lead lined. Your dad’s been saved by Superman enough times that he might have him on speed dial but Superman can’t save you now.”

“Who said I needed saving?”

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I know this isn't the update for the Replacement turned Original Series that I talked about but I just kind of wanted to get this out already. This story isn't completely finished yet even though I do know where I want to take it. Young Justice/The Titans/The Core Four will be mentioned in the next chapter but I'm currently working on the confrontation between the Bats and Tim after the revelations. Fingers crossed that posting this makes me more motivated to finish the next chapters!
> 
> Also, I read a lot of the Kidnapped Tim Drake Angst stories and I got inspired to write one as well. I've had this written down for a good few months and I felt it was finally time to post this. If you have any suggestions or comments, please don't hesitate to let me know!


End file.
